Palais des Festivals et des Congrès
A major convention and events venue in Cannes, France, best known as the principal home of the Cannes Film Festival.
Last updated August 21, 2026
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Overview
The Palais des Festivals et des Congrès is a large convention, exhibition, and entertainment venue in Cannes, on the French Riviera. Its international profile is closely associated with the Festival de Cannes, the annual film event commonly known in English as the Cannes Film Festival. The building also accommodates a broad calendar of trade shows, media markets, corporate conventions, award ceremonies, cultural events, and public performances. The venue’s history began with the first Palais des Festivals, completed in 1949 to provide a permanent home for the growing Cannes Film Festival. The original structure stood on the Croisette at the site now occupied by the JW Marriott Cannes. As the film festival expanded and Cannes developed into a significant destination for business events, the original building became inadequate for the city’s ambitions. The emergence of major professional gatherings, including the MIPTV media market from 1965, increased demand for larger and more technically capable facilities. Cannes therefore decided to construct a new Palais. The replacement complex was built on the site of the former municipal casino and opened in December 1982. Designed in a modernist style by Sir Hubert Bennett and François Druet, the six-storey building provided a substantially larger setting for conferences, exhibitions, screenings, performances, and festival operations. Its location at the eastern end of the Croisette, close to the port, gives it a prominent position within Cannes’s tourism and event district. Further capacity was added in 1999 through the Espace Riviera project, which contributed approximately 10,000 square metres of additional space. In total, the venue has about 35,000 square metres devoted mainly to exhibitions and event use, together with numerous meeting rooms and 18 auditoriums. The largest auditorium can accommodate approximately 2,300 people. These facilities support both high-profile annual events and year-round professional activity. The Palais is used by several internationally recognized events. In addition to the Cannes Film Festival, it hosts the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, MIPIM, and the NRJ Music Awards. Its programming illustrates the venue’s dual role: it is a symbolic cultural landmark associated with cinema and celebrity, while also functioning as a practical business-events center for the convention, real-estate, media, advertising, and entertainment industries. Operational oversight was reorganized in January 1992 with the creation of the Société d'économie mixte pour les événements de la ville de Cannes, commonly known as SEMEC. The organization resulted from the merger of Cannes Tourism, OMACC, and the association Cannes Palais des Festivals et des Congrès. This structure placed management of the Palais within a broader municipal events and tourism framework. The venue remains an active Cannes institution whose identity is defined by the combination of internationally visible festivals, large-scale congress infrastructure, and the city’s wider event economy.
History
The Palais des Festivals et des Congrès developed in response to Cannes’s emergence as both a film-festival city and an international business-events destination. The first Palais was completed in 1949, specifically to host the Cannes Film Festival. It was located along the Promenade de la Croisette, on the site where the JW Marriott Cannes later stood. Beyond its principal film role, the original building also hosted the fourth and sixth Eurovision Song Contests, held in 1959 and 1961. During the 1960s, the growth of Cannes’s professional-events calendar placed increasing pressure on the original facility. The launch of business gatherings such as the MIPTV media market in 1965 demonstrated that Cannes was becoming more than a seasonal cultural destination. The city needed a larger venue capable of handling exhibitions, congresses, media events, screenings, and public ceremonies at the same time. The success and expanding international reach of the film festival reinforced this requirement. In 1979, the City of Cannes decided to build a new Palais. The project used the site of the municipal casino and was conceived as a six-storey modernist structure. Sir Hubert Bennett and François Druet were the architects. The new building opened in December 1982, replacing the original Palais as the city’s principal festival and convention facility. Its position at the top of Boulevard de la Croisette, beside the port and near the eastern end of the Croisette, connected it closely to Cannes’s established tourism and hospitality infrastructure. The building was subsequently enlarged. In 1999, the Espace Riviera was constructed, adding a new area of approximately 10,000 square metres. This expansion strengthened the Palais’s ability to host large exhibitions and overlapping events. The resulting complex has an overall area of roughly 35,000 square metres, with exhibition areas, meeting rooms, and 18 auditoriums. The largest auditorium has a capacity of about 2,300 people. The venue’s facilities are described as modern and technologically equipped for conferences and other large events. The Palais’s calendar combines high-visibility cultural programming with specialized business gatherings. The Cannes Film Festival remains its most internationally prominent user. Other major events associated with the site include the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, MIPIM, and the NRJ Music Awards. These events bring different audiences and industries to the same complex: filmmakers and performers, advertising and communications professionals, real-estate specialists, media companies, delegates, exhibitors, and international visitors. A management reorganization took place in January 1992, when the Société d'économie mixte pour les événements de la ville de Cannes, or SEMEC, was created. SEMEC was formed through the merger of Cannes Tourism, OMACC, and the association Cannes Palais des Festivals et des Congrès. The arrangement reflected the close relationship between venue management, tourism promotion, and the city’s events strategy. Today, the Palais functions as both a physical venue and a major symbol of Cannes’s event economy. Its reputation is not based on a conventional consumer product portfolio but on the scale, prestige, and diversity of the events it accommodates. The combination of the Cannes Film Festival’s global visibility, recurring trade fairs, award ceremonies, and year-round congress activity makes the Palais one of France’s best-known festival and convention locations.
- 1999
Espace Riviera expansion completed
[1]The Espace Riviera added approximately 10,000 square metres of event space to the complex.
- 1992
SEMEC was created
[1]The Société d'économie mixte pour les événements de la ville de Cannes was established to oversee the Palais and related city events functions.
- 1982
New Palais opened
[1]The new six-storey modernist Palais opened in December on its present Cannes site.
- 1979
Decision to construct a new Palais
[1]The City of Cannes decided to replace the original facility with a larger building on the site of the municipal casino.
- 1965
MIPTV helped expand Cannes’s business-events role
[1]The arrival of the MIPTV media market illustrated the growing importance of Cannes as a professional convention and media-events destination.
- 1961
Hosted the sixth Eurovision Song Contest
[1]The original venue hosted the sixth Eurovision Song Contest.
- 1959
Hosted the fourth Eurovision Song Contest
[1]The original Cannes Palais hosted the fourth Eurovision Song Contest.
- 1949
First Palais des Festivals completed
[1]The original Palais des Festivals was built in Cannes to provide a venue for the Cannes Film Festival.
Products and positioning
An internationally recognized French convention and events venue positioned at the intersection of film, entertainment, business tourism, trade exhibitions, and large-scale professional congresses.
Business events
Convention and meeting facilities
The Palais provides numerous rooms and auditoriums for congresses, conferences, corporate meetings, presentations, and professional gatherings. Its event infrastructure is designed to support both individual meetings and large multi-session conventions, with the largest auditorium accommodating approximately 2,300 people.
Exhibitions and trade shows · 1999
Exhibition facilities
With an overall area of approximately 35,000 square metres and a major expansion through Espace Riviera, the venue offers substantial space for exhibitions, trade fairs, industry showcases, and events requiring exhibitor areas alongside conference programming.
Cultural and entertainment events · 1982
Festival and entertainment venues
The Palais supports film festivals, award ceremonies, screenings, performances, and other high-profile public events. Its strongest association is with the Cannes Film Festival, while the NRJ Music Awards and other entertainment programs reinforce its role as a major cultural venue.
Media and professional markets · 1965
Media-market and industry-event facilities
The complex accommodates specialized media and industry markets, including the MIPTV media market. These uses connect the Palais to international television, film, advertising, communications, and other professional sectors that depend on exhibition, networking, and conference space.
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